The Road Traffic Management Corporation: a case study

M.Ing.The focus of this dissertation is on the evaluation of management in traffic safety, and how it is applied, using the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) as a case study. Road Traffic Management in South Africa is in a state of crisis. The constitution provides for concurrency with respect to road traffic management, however, no mechanism has been implemented for co-operation and coordination. It has been found that the current institutional arrangements are not conducive to co-ordination and rapid interventions. Due to the scarcity of resources and the desire to streamline the institutional arrangements, an innovative model has been developed which will perform road traffic management collectively, the Road Traffic Management Corporation, RTMC. The implementation of the RTMC will require full co-operation and acceptance by all the various departments concerned, from National Government level, through to Provincial levels, and the Local Authorities. Before the Corporation can be implemented, the funding needs to be secured, and the source of the funding must be stable and committed. The implementing of such a corporation will be delicate, and organizational structure needs to be clear to all parties. At this early stage of the RTMC, the methods of management already used by the RTMC need to be compared to proper management principles, to ensure that the RTMC will have the best structure to ensure its success. Any uncertainties or concerns that may exist among those involved at lower levels can be communicated to top-level management implementing the corporation. By conducting an independent, external investigation, any short falls can be identified which may have been over looked previously. This dissertation aims to ensure that the RTMC adheres to the relevant management principles, focussing on the objective of improving road safety. A questionnaire is devised for the National Department of Transport, so that an independent view of the vision of the RTMC can be acquired. The organizational structure proposed by the RTMC is examined and evaluated to determine the relationship, communication channels, functions and responsibilities, which are intended between the various levels of management and stakeholders. The funding of a corporation such as the RTMC is considered, as the source of such funds needs to be secured before the RTMC can be implemented. A preliminary budget prepared for the RTMC is compared to what funding has been made available. The main objective of the RTMC is to improve road safety. Therefore, the process it intends to use is evaluated to determine whether the goals it intends to achieve through this process are realistic. The engineering function required to improve road safety will also be evaluated in terms of what can be done by engineers to improve the safety on South African roads